March 26, 2015
UCF Athletics Social Media Directory
By Megan Herboth
UCFKnights.com
BOCA RATON, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) - No. 18 UCF Softball posted its 15th shutout of the season, topping Florida Atlantic 2-0 at the FAU Softball Stadium on Thursday afternoon. The Knights came out on top in a pitcher's duel, improving to 31-5 on the season.
"Just knowing how tough FAU is right now, they're getting votes in the Top 25 and are a very solid team with solid pitching and solid hitting, we knew coming into this we had to play our best game," UCF head coach Renee Luers-Gillispie said. "I was very excited for the girls in this game because they came out and they executed."
Junior Shelby Turnier earned her 15th win of the season, allowing just three hits while fanning eight batters in seven innings. The teams combined for just one hit in the first two inning, but the UCF bats warmed up in the third inning.
Sophomore Brittany Solis opened the third inning with a single up the middle. A sacrifice bunt and a ground out moved Solis over to third. Senior Kahley Novak sent Solis home with an RBI single out to right field. The Knights led 1-0 heading to the bottom of the inning.
After a scoreless fourth inning, junior Samantha McCloskey opened the fifth inning with a double to right center. Sophomore pinch runner Andrea Neswiacheny advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Solis and scored on an RBI single from senior Maddy Schroeder. UCF held a 2-0 advantage after five complete innings.
The Owls threatened the UCF lead in the bottom of the sixth. With two outs and a runner on first, FAU used a UCF throwing error to put two runners on. A walk loaded the bases for the Owls, but senior Farrah Sullivan got the Knights out of the jam as she collected the third out to end the inning.
McCloskey gave the Knights a base runner in the top of the seventh with a hard single up the middle. She tagged up and moved to second on a foul out. Schroeder singled to right field, but McCloskey was thrown out at home to end UCF's scoring chances.
With one out in the bottom of the seventh, Laura Mann doubled to center field. FAU's pinch runner was left on second as a line drive and a ground out ended the game.
Maddy Schroeder went 2-for-2 with an RBI in the game. Samantha McCloskey finished with a pair of hits.
UCF Softball, which is presented by City Kia of Greater Orlando, is back at the UCF Softball Stadium on Saturday, hosting UConn in the first home conference series of the season. The first game in a doubleheader between the Knights and the Huskies begins at 1 p.m. Sunday's single game is slated for a 12 p.m. start.